[daniele_g]

I had heard the W1000's twice and both times I fell in love with them.
So, when I saw a pair selling at a reasonable price, I bought them without thinking it over.

And... disappointment !

I cannot find that sound that involved me so much !
There's a "hole" in the mid frequencies (in a direct comparison with K501's I could hear some guitar details that with the W1000's just... weren't there !) and anyway the overall sound is a little bit... ah, I don't know.

Now:
- I had never listened to W1000's with my XCan V2 before buying them;
- the cans seem original, if they're fakes (yes, I even thought about that), they're very well done fakes.

so, do you think XCan is such a bad companion for W1000's ?
the seller told me they're practically new, that they sounded less than 10 hrs: in your eperience, do the W1000's change significantly their sound with use ? do you think the W1000 need burning-in ?
or do they just need burning ?

ciao
daniele

 

[atothex]

I have the same problem with my AD2000s on a lot of amps and sources. Audio Technicas can be notoriously picky about amplification. Try auditioning them on different equipment; especially try to recreate your first 2 experiences using your personal pair.

 

[thrillmetoo]

I don't think the amp is to blame. I'm sure W1000 aren't picky. They sound the same on every source and amp I've ever heard them on.
Then again, I don't think it's the cans either. W1000 have absolutely no hole in the mids. On the contrary: they have very pronounced mids (which I personally like, but others on this forum call lack of bass).
I suspect there could be something wrong with them.

 

[plonkersaurus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by daniele_g /img/forum/go_quote.gif I had heard the W1000's twice and both times I fell in love with them. So, when I saw a pair selling at a reasonable price, I bought them without thinking it over. And... disappointment ! I cannot find that sound that involved me so much ! There's a "hole" in the mid frequencies (in a direct comparison with K501's I could hear some guitar details that with the W1000's just... weren't there !) and anyway the overall sound is a little bit... ah, I don't know. Now: - I had never listened to W1000's with my XCan V2 before buying them; - the cans seem original, if they're fakes (yes, I even thought about that), they're very well done fakes. so, do you think XCan is such a bad companion for W1000's ? the seller told me they're practically new, that they sounded less than 10 hrs: in your eperience, do the W1000's change significantly their sound with use ? do you think the W1000 need burning-in ? or do they just need burning ? ciao daniele

I have W5000's and when comparing them to the k501's I know what you mean. If you just listen to the W1000's by themselves for a while your ears will get used to not hearing the k501's mids and you will hear the improvements.

 

[anadin]

I couldn't wait to sell the pair I purchased, they sounded so Honky-Fied to my ears, a terrible sounding headphone in my opinion.

 

[M3NTAL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thrillmetoo /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't think the amp is to blame. I'm sure W1000 aren't picky. They sound the same on every source and amp I've ever heard them on. Then again, I don't think it's the cans either. W1000 have absolutely no hole in the mids. On the contrary: they have very pronounced mids (which I personally like, but others on this forum call lack of bass). I suspect there could be something wrong with them.

On the contrary, my W1000's sounded much different going from my PS Audio GCHA to the Little Dot MKIV SE.

The GCHA was too dry/sterile with them. The Little Dot gave them some warmth/life and bass.

The highs were too awkward in general with the phones, so I let them go. Great for female vocals and trance music though.

 

[peteham]

I have a pair that I just put in storage. The lack of bass drove me crazy. Though the A700s I had couldn't hold a candle to the W1000s clarity wise, they did have a lovely bottom end.

 

[elrod-tom]

In my experience, the X-Cans and X-Cans V2 are not the best amps in the world with lower impedence cans. I had Grado SR225's that I loved with my HeadRoom Max that were ear-bleedingly sibilant in an amp that I absolutely loved with AKG K501's and K340's.

So...it might be your amp to some degree. That said, that "hole in the midrange" rings somewhat familiar to me. Might just be a particularly bad combination.

 

[moonboy403]

Quote:

Originally Posted by peteham /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have a pair that I just put in storage. The lack of bass drove me crazy. Though the A700s I had couldn't hold a candle to the W1000s clarity wise, they did have a lovely bottom end.

The A700's bass is definitely a LOT more prominent but it's also uncontrolled and boomy.

 

[panda]

trade that xcan turd for a rega ear.

 

[daniele_g]

Thank you very much for all the answers so far, guys, though I must say they seem quite not in agreement (and I can't decide if that's good or bad news to me...).

Meanwhile, I let the cans play all night long (with CDP in 'repeat' mode) and I think I'll do that for some nigths to come, to hear if anything changes.

Moreover, following atothex suggestion, I asked a friend of mine, whose W1000's made me fall in love, to let me have a 'comparison test' between his pair and mine, possibly with the same amp, a Rudistor dunnothemodel (RPX100 ?). This could be less easy, 'cause I heard my friend's W1000 with the Rudi amp at a... how do you call it ? a "can-o-phile meeting" ?

@elrod-tom: yeah, you're right: I already noticed that XCan V2 is not the best match for low impedance cans.
so it seems I just MUST buy a Rudistor: would you please help me explain such absolute and not popstponable necessity to my wife ?

thank you all once again

ciao
daniele

 

[Wenglish]

I found the stock W1000s to be a bit picky. Amp/source/actual music. Some albums worked, some didn't.

Doing the Fitz mod to them brought out a lot of bass over stock and made them a little more versatile, imo. Switching from the EF1 (which is supposed to shine with low impedance cans) to a Meier HA2 MK2 SE, however, made a bigger change for me.

 

[daniele_g]

During this time I've let the W1000's play and now they have played about 40 hours. But what's most, yesterday evening I met my friend and his own W1000's to have a direct comparison with same CDP and amp, namely my Linn Genki and MF XCan V2 (unmodded, standard tube).
We were four and we all perceived the same differences, i.e.: my W1000 sound less "rich" in harmonics, a little bit "drier", decay seems a little bit too short; for the same reason, though, they sound more precise and rigorous.

At the moment I still prefer my friend's W1000s, but should I indicate a percentage, mine are 85% that way and I hope they will improve by sounding on and on, getting more 'relaxed' and 'soft' -that's what I loved these cans for- and stopping being that shy and stern.

By the way, I think I can sentence that XCan V2 is not a very good match for W1000: not bad, but I think -no: I know they can do much better.


ciao
daniele

 

[ical]

I don't have any problem that you've stated with my W1000. It's mid is good. It might due to my Yamamoto amp which matches it well.

 

[estreeter]

Sounds like the 501s have ruined all other headphones for the OP - if its any consolation, I see a lot of the same in AKG-specific threads, usually accompanied by 'if only the 501s had more bass impact ....'. Its a cruel world.

For mine, AD900 is as far as I want to go in terms of the current A-T line, and they should be in my grubby hands this time next month, all going to plan.